Why it works: Butter and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 17% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 98,233 recipes. Both carry guaiacol, which smells smoky, sweet. The science ↓
General Directions for Frying Fritters and Pancakes
Ingredients
Directions
Heat deep, round-bottomed saucepan with boiling butter or lard.
Test heat by dropping a spoonful of batter; it should rise instantly and turn golden brown.
Carefully remove fritters with a perforated skimmer and drain on soft paper.
Dust with powdered sugar and serve warm.
For pancakes, heat a small frying pan and add 1-2 teaspoons of lard.
Quickly coat the bottom with lard, then pour in enough batter to cover it with a thin layer.
Turn pancakes carefully with a spatula, place in a hot dish, dust with powdered sugar, roll up, and serve.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Butter + sugartop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
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